One of the best tools that you have as gardeners to help us estimate your gardening schedule is the USDA zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

By looking at the USDA zone info for Grinnell you should be able to determine when it's the best time to plant salsify.

Planting Calendar for Salsify

Frost tolerance for salsify:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Salsify tend to make it in a tiny bit of cold which means that you can plant them just a tiny bit earlier in the year than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant salsify in Grinnell is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant salsify and expect a good harvest is probably August. Any later than that and your salsify may not have a chance to really do well. You can get started a little bit earlier by starting your salsify indoors.

Last Frost Date

In Grinnell the average date of last frost happens on April 15. You can expect an average low temperature of -20°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Grinnell is just an average and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Grinnell there is a last frost after April 15 so always be ready to cover your salsify if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Grinnell

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5a.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-20°F
Highest Expected Low	-15°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -20°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -15°F.

Plants to Grow in Grinnell

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Grinnell.